Valve



VALVE Filed Feb. 16. 1927 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 24, 1929 ETD STATESPATENT GFFICE VALVE Application led February 16, 1927. Serial No.168,648.

rIhis invention relates to improvements in valves and more particularlyto an air control valve for air jacks of that type used in various wayswith saw mill machinery, it being the principal object ont the inventionto provide an automatic valve mechanism for controlling passage oi'compressed air to the ack cylinder both for the extension and returnstrokes of the jack. More specically stated,

the invention resides in the provision of duplicate valve mechanismsconnected with a source of supply of Compressed air and adapted,respectively, to control the delivery of air to the jack for extendingit and for reti-acting it; said duplicate valves being movable betweenopen and closed positions by compressed air under the control of anauxiliary valve operable manually orelectrically.

Other objects of the invention reside in the various details ofconstruction and combination ot parts and in their mode of operation, asis hereinatter described.

In accomplishing these and other obj ects of the invention, I haveprovided the improved details oi' construction, the preferred forms ofwhich are illustrated in the accompanying drawingawherein- F ig. 1 is acentral, sectional view of a valve mechanism embodied by the presentinvention.

F ig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view, taken on the line 2 2 in F ig.1.

Referring more in detail to the several views of the drawings- Thedevice, in a preferred form of construction, comprises a valve housing 1provided across the top with a chamber 2 having a threaded opening 3 towhich a pipe connection, as at 3, may be made with a source of supply ofcompressed air. At opposite sides of the valve housing are openings 4and 5 with which pipes 6 and 7 are connected for the delivery of thecompressed air to the cylinder of the air jack. In the presentillustration, the opening 4 and pipe 6 provides for the delivery of airto that end of the jack cylinder that will cause the ack to be retractedWhile the opening 5 and pipe 7 provides for the delivery of the air tothe opposite end oil the cylinder for the extension of the jack.

Formed in the housing 1, in parallel relation and opening at their upperends into the air chamber 2 are cylindrical bores 8 and 9 55 which,along their lower ends, are enlarged to provide the cylinders 10 and 11;these being closed at their lower ends by plugs 10 and 11 that arelthreaded thereinto. Sleeves 12 and 13 are iitted respectively in thebores 60 8 and 9 and these have openings, as at 14, therein registeringwith the housing openings 4 and 5 so that, under the control of valvemechanisms presently described, air may be delivered from chamber 2 intopipes 6 and 7. 65 Also, the opposite ends of the sleeves 12 and 13 areconically tapered to provide the valve seats15 and 16.

Slidably contained within the cylinders 10 and 1'1 are pistons 17 and 18provided, respectively, with upwardly tapered valve heads 19 and 20which are adapted to close against the valve seats 16 at the lower endsof the sleeves 12 and 13. Fixed within these pistons and extendingupwardly through the sleeves 12 and 13, are rods 21 and 22 which, attheir upper ends, have valves 23 and 24 fixed thereon these lattervalves being adapted to close against the seats 15 at the upper ends ofthe sleeves. Each of these rods is of such length that when the valve ateither end thereof is seated, the Valve at its opposite end will beunseated.

Centrally between the two bores 8 and 9 is a cylindrical bore 25connected at its upper sa end by a channel 26 with the chamber 2. Thisbore 25 has a sleeve 27 fitted therein which is provided at its upperend with a valve seat 28. A valve 29 is adapted to close downwardlyagainst this seat and is carried by a 9o downwardly extending stem 30provided with a button 31 at its lower end that fits snugly within thesleeve and projects somewhat from the lower end of the sleeve so that itmay be engaged for manual or mechanical adjustment of the valve 29. Anair exhaust channel 32 opens from the lower end of the sleeve 27 toatmosphere and its opening into sleeve 27 is so located that it will beclosed by the valve stem button 31 when the latter 10o is raised to openthe valve 29 above the seat 28. Also, there is an exhaust port 35 fromthe lower part of cylinder 11 into the sleeve 27 and there is an exhaustport 37 opening to atmosphere from the upper end of the cylinder 10.Also, there is provided an exhaust channel 36 leading from the upper endof the cylinder 11 into the lower end portion of cylinder 10.

rlhe button 31 may be either manually or mechanically actuated for thecontrol of the valve mechanism. It is preferred, however, to do thismechanically by use of a pivoted lever operable under the control of asolenoid, or electromagnet.

ln Fig. 1, l have indicated such a lever at 4() and a solenoid at 41with circuit wires 42 and 43 which may lead to a switch 44 located at apoint conveniently accessible to the operator.

lWith the device so constructed, and assuming that the pipe 3 isconnected with a source of compressed air and pipes 6 and 7 with thejack cylinder properly for the retraction and extension of the jack, itsoperation is as follows: To extend the jack, the operator closes thecircuit through the solenoid 41 thereby causing its core bar to moveupwardly and roch the lever 40 to push the bottom 31 upwardly. Thisbutton, when so lifted, closes the exhaust channel 32 and opens valve 29which permits air to flow from the chamber 2, through channel 26, sleeve27 and port 35 into the lower end of cylinder 11 to thereby lift thepiston 18. This opens the valve 24 so that air may then low from thechamber 2 through sleeve 13, opening 5 and pipe 7 to the jack cylinderto cause the jack to bev extended.

Wrhen the jack is to be retracted, the circuit is opened and the but-ton31 then drops downwardly, valve 29 closes and exhaust channel 32 isuncovered by button 31 so that air exhausts from cylinder 11 beneathpiston 18 to atmosphere through port 35, sleeve 27 and channel 32. Thispermits piston 18 to move downwardly and valve 24 to close. As thepiston 18 moves downwardly valve 24 closes the upper end of the sleeve13 and opens the lower end and the exhaust air from the jack, togetherwith any air from chamber 2 that enters prior' to closing of valve 24,is permitted to pass from pipe 7 through sleeve 13, upper end ofcylinder 11 and through channel 36 into the lower end of cylinder 10 toraise piston 17, closing valve 19 and opening valve 23, so that air maythen flow from chamber 2, through sleeve 12, opening 4 and pipe 6 to thejack cylinder to cause the jack to retract.

The pressure of air in cylinder 10 under the piston 17 is graduallyreduced by the escape of the ,air through the ports 45 in the closingplug 10. rThese Vports are covered by a perforated slide plate 46mounted by a screw 47'by means of which the flow of air may be regulatedby adjusting the plate to more or less cover the ports 45.

Vhen pressure of air in cylinder 10 has sufficiently decreased, lthepiston 17 moves downward, the valve 23 closes and the valve 19 is openedpermitting the air in the retract pipe 6 to the jack to exhaust to theatmosphere through port 37, thus closing the cycle of operations. Thetime to be allowed for escape or air through the adjustable ports 45will vary with the jack construction and nature of work.

lt is evident that compressed air, steam or other liquid may be usedwith this valve and that the details' or" construction may vary withinthe principle of the invention.

' Having thus described my invention, what l claim as new therein anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. An air jacl; mechanism of the character described comprising acompressed air chamber with outlets for connection with the elevatin@`and reti-acting sides of a jack cylinder, a control valve for eachoutlet, actuating means for each valve and a manually operable controlmeans iior admitting air from the chamber to the control means of thevalve for the elevating side of the jack to open that valve, andcommunicating means between the valve actuating means whereby exhaustair from the elevating side of the ack is caused to open the valve ofthe retracting side of the jack so as to admit air Jfrom the chamberthrough the outlet to the retracting side of the jack.

2. An air ack mechanism of the character described, comprising acompressed air chamber with outlets for connection, respectively, withthe elevating and retracting sides of a jack cylinder, a control valvefor each outlet, an elevating cylinder and a retracting cylindercorresponding to said outlets and' having communication therewith attheir inner ends, valve `pistons in said cylinders adapted to seatagainst the inner ends thereof to close communication between thecylinders and their respective outlets andconnected, respectively, withthe said control valves, a communicating channel from the inner end oiLthe elevating cylinder to the outer end of the retracting cylinderthrough which air flows when the piston in the. elevating cylinder isunseated, an exhaust port in the inner end of the retracting cylinderthat is uncovered when the piston in that cylinder is unseated, an airchannel from the chamber into the outer end of the elevating cylinder,an atmospheric exhaust port and a control valve for the said channel andfor the atmospheric exhaust port.

Signed at Everett, Vashington, this 31st day of December, 1926.

LA VERNE BRAKE.

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